Leaving For The Tea Room
by quiet liban
Summary: This is Percy's life. This is what he does. PercyDraco
1. July 1999

**Title:** Leaving For The Tea Room  
**Author:** quietliban**  
Summary: **This is Percy's life. This is what he does.  
**Disclaimer:** The Harry Potter universe, characters and concepts contained therein belong to JK Rowling and her associated publishers. No copyright infringement is intended.  
**A/N:** Thanks to DanieChagnon23456 from FAP for the beta.

* * *

**July 1999**

**10:58 am Monday, 12th of July 1999**

Percy walks authoritatively through the Minister's offices carrying files he likes to think are important. He's only a junior assistant and has been for two and a half years. He is proud of his post, and he has always thought that he would be lucky to make it to senior secretary in some small, insignificant office. He is, after all, only young and for twenty-three years of age, a junior assistant position to anybody is quite an achievement.

He carries the files to the receptionist's desk. Eloise Chambers smiles politely at him when he reaches the bench. The vase of flowers and the photographs on her desk are the only things that vaguely resemble the muggle receptionist's desk he and his brother Ron had seen the day their father had dragged them into a muggle doctor's waiting room. Not that he has a father or even a younger brother called Ron anymore. The gerberas in the receptionist's vase are charmed to remember important dates and the people in the photographs are smiling and waving joyously, unlike those who were posing so motionlessly in the photograph on the muggle receptionist's desk.

He leans over onto the bench, pushing the files into the matronly witch's hand.

"For Quigley?" the receptionist asks with her eyebrows slightly raised.

Percy nods. "They're the Dementor reports." He can't help the proud tone in his voice. He was trusted with the Dementor reports, an honour that he takes very seriously.

Eloise's eyes widen slightly at the creatures' name, but she makes no comment, and doesn't flick through the papers like Percy is used to seeing her do. Percy begins to think that maybe she is learning her place.

He turns to go back to his office. It's only a small room and he shares it with Adrian Pucey, another junior assistant. Percy doesn't mind Adrian so much, although sometimes he has looked up to find the other wizard watching him. He is unnerved on these occasions, but he never says anything. Adrian has worked there longer.

He passes a blonde pointy-faced man as he turns back into his hallway. Somehow the man looks familiar to him, and then the pale blonde hair clicks in his mind. The other man is a Malfoy. An uncomfortable distaste flickers in Percy's stomach.

It is stupid to have a grudge against another person he barely knows because of their hair colour. Percy knows this, but it doesn't stop him. Besides, he justifies himself, the other man holds his flag of red hair against him.

Adrian glances up at him as he walks in. He slides in behind his desk and looks back at the other wizard, who is now concentrating intently on the parchment in front of him. Percy shrugs dismissively to himself before re-immersing himself back into the pile of parchment on his desk.

**12:46pm Tuesday, 13th of July, 1999**

Percy stands in line at the Ministry's cafeteria, the fatty aroma of the dry roast beef and gravy drift down along the line where he is waiting. It has been a long day, he thinks, with the news that morning of yet another unmarked attack. Gossip and disbelief have been simmering through the Ministry's employees, and many of the departments are involved in damage control.

He decides that he is lucky to be working in the Minister's offices, mostly because it means he does not have to endanger himself in whatever clean-up activities the other departments have to deal with. He only has to deal with the panicked letters of distraught housewives. He knows that it's somewhat cowardly to be so glad of such a fact, but he also knows that he is brave in other ways.

As he carries his lunch to an empty table, he notices the blonde man, the young Malfoy, as he walks by.

The pointy-faced man is sitting with a young dark haired witch, who has an Auror badge pinned primly on her shoulder. It strikes Percy as odd that she is not involved in the damage control operations, and as he passes a snippet of their conversation wafts into his ears.

"Yesterday, they said come back tomorrow," the young Malfoy is saying dejectedly. A small sneer enters his voice on the last syllable. "They won't let me anywhere near the damned offices now because of that _blasted_ attack, because aren't I that Death Eater's son?"

"Don't worry about it, Draco. Try again when everything calms down." The dark haired witch pats the Malfoy's arm.

"It would just be easier if he were home, Pansy. Mother would be happier and…" The blonde man looks up, and sees Percy. Immediately the sadness in his face is replaced with cool distaste. He keeps walking, pretending not to have noticed the blonde man or to have overheard their conversation.

**2:17 pm, Monday, 26th of July, 1999**

Unease has spread throughout the wizarding community. Percy knows that the Magical Law Enforcement Squad have no leads on the unmarked attack.

A reform proposal from the Council of Magical Law sits on top of his desk. When a senior advisor asked him to draft it, he was surprised as it is not usually as task he is delegated to do. It's a depressing piece of paperwork, the details of Azkaban more dark and raw here than in the Dementor reports he had been so proud to be working on. He had never imagined that Azkaban was so terrifying. He always knew that it was place he had never wanted to visit and in some part of his mind it is still a horrific fairy story that his parents threatened him with when he misbehaved. Not that he ever misbehaved or even has parents.

The proposal is to reinstate the Hemlock sentence now that the Dementors and their Kiss have fled. Percy is distressed by this idea. He wonders if he should request that the proposal be handled by someone else, but it is not in him to let someone else have glory and credit to their name when it could just as easily be his. Besides, he knows that now the Dementors are gone that there is a need for greater discouragement of crime, but he doesn't think that the Kiss was ever a reasonable punishment and the Hemlock sentence isn't much better.

There's a knock on the shared office door. Percy looks across to Adrian, who is staring puzzled at the door. They rarely get callers into their office.

"Come in," Percy calls, and the door swings open. The young Malfoy stands over the threshold, his grey eyes meeting Percy's. The red-head shivers slightly at the horror and disgust mixed in the other man's eyes before bending back over the proposal.

"Adrian, can I talk to you for a moment?" He hears the youngest Malfoy ask, and Percy looks up curiously. The young Malfoy pays no notice to him.

"I'm at work, Draco," Adrian answers, something in his tone that Percy can't identify. He thinks it might be annoyance, but it also might be confusion.

There is silence for a moment, as no one in the room talks. Percy watches as the pointy-faced Malofy cocks his head to the side and studies Adrian.

The blonde man is watching his co-worker the same way that Adrian sometimes watches him. This confuses Percy, and he thinks that it must be a Slytherin thing.

"I need you to help me," the young Malfoy says carefully, an almost pleading tone to his voice. Percy is shocked; he did not even think that the Malfoys even knew about that tone. He remembers another Malfoy, the elder one, who was regal and imperious even when cast out of favour.

"Can't it wait?" Adrian answers, his voice is most definitely annoyed now.

"It's important."

"None of them will see you, will they?" Adrian's voice is tinged with laughter.

"Can you please be quiet?" Percy speaks up. He is frustrated by their conversation and thinks that it is his office just as much as it is Adrian Pucey's.

"I don't believe this involves you, Weasley," the young Malfoy tells him. The arrogance has returned, and Percy glares at him.

"You're in my office. I think it involves me. So please Mr. Malfoy, would you kindly remove yourself before I call security?" he says it politely, seeing the outrage on the blonde man's face.

The young Malfoy calms himself and then smirks. The expression changing his features, making them less attractive and more pointed. "All that money is going to your head, Weasley."

Percy is unmoved by the pointy-faced man's comment. "Leave," he simply states before bending his head back to his paperwork. He doesn't look across to Adrian for approval. He doesn't care if Adrian agrees with him. The mere presence of the young Malfoy disturbs him.


	2. September 1999

**Title:** Leaving For The Tea Room  
**Author:** quietliban**  
Summary: **This is Percy's life. This is what he does.  
**Disclaimer:** The Harry Potter universe, characters and concepts contained therein belong to JK Rowling and her associated publishers. No copyright infringement is intended.  
**A/N:** Thanks to DanieChagnon23456 from FAP for the beta.

* * *

**September 1999**

**1:11am Thursday, 2nd of September, 1999**

Percy doesn't expect to see him again so soon, but the young Malfoy is in the receptionist's waiting room the next week. His grey eyes are staring murderously at Eloise, and Percy continues to walk over to her desk.

The plump witch looks up at him. "Veronica Hedges sent these over. She said that they're from the CML?" He remains stoic at the implied question in the receptionist voice. He doesn't want to add to her gossip. The file is quite thin, and he takes it, glancing back to where the pointy-faced Malfoy is sitting with his grey eyes trained on the desk. Percy stops, and turns back to Eloise. "Mr Weasley?" the receptionist asks when he hesitates to leave.

"Why is Draco Malfoy here?" he asks. Eloise glances over the top of her desk to where the blonde man is sitting.

The receptionist sighs. "Oh, the poor lad," she begins and Percy is confused by the use of this term to describe the young Malfoy, but he continues to listen. "He's been trying for months now to get an audience with the Minister."

He glances back to the sullen blonde man. "Whatever for?" he asks.

"To get his father out of Azkaban," the receptionist reports and Percy is surprised. He never really paid much attention to the scandal that put the elder Malfoy in Azkaban.

"Thanks Eloise," he nods at the files in his hand and returns to back to his office.

**4:38pm Wednesday, 15th of September, 1999**

The history section in Flourish and Blotts is a dusty and murky place. The books seem as old as their content, and a musty smell fills the air. Percy wishes that he was through with his search, but the Hemlock proposal hasn't stopped bothering him. He knows that the Hemlock Sentence was used centuries ago in both the muggle and wizarding worlds. His research in the Ministry libraries was fruitless, and he hasn't found any records of when and where it was used. He thinks that it is very odd of the Ministry to have no records of such things, but he doesn't question, instead he has come here to find the answers to his questions.

He sighs heavily as he opens his third tome, searching the index for any mention of Hemlock. Once again Percy is disappointed. He closes the book and puts it back on the shelf, bumping into a slender body as he steps back. He turns to apologise, but the words are silenced as he meets grey eyes.

"Weasley," the greeting is more of a threat.

"Malfoy," Percy responds, keeping his voice neutral. The grey eyes are still watching him disdainfully. He turns away again, but he can still feel those grey eyes on his back.

He tries to focus on the titles in front of him, but he's now painfully aware of the blonde man standing behind him. He shifts his weight as he draws out another book from the shelf, the back of his arm briefly touching the slender blonde man behind him. He doesn't bother to apologise. He knows it won't be welcomed. The title of the book does not look promising but that doesn't mean that it won't be helpful.

There is no mention of Hemlock in the index and he shuts the book in disappointment. The sound of the heavy book closing is loud in the relative quiet of the bookshop. He decides to try the Herbology section; at least he knows that hemlock that is referred to in the proposal is a poisonous plant. Percy passes the young Malfoy as he moves to the other section. He glances at the book the blonde man is holding in his hands; _Wizengamot: When They Were Wrong. _

The title of the book does not reassure Percy in any way about the Hemlock Sentence, and he knows he must keep going with his research.

**5:25pm Tuesday, 21st of September, 1999**

Percy arrives home from work; he rubs his eyes, knocking his horn-rimmed glasses slightly askew. He has brought the Hemlock Sentence proposal home with him despite the fact that he knows it is safer at work. He wants to read over it again before he has to submit it the next morning.

The text that he finally found on hemlock didn't even begin to assuage his fears about the proposal. His new knowledge about how it was used in ancient Greece makes him think that the proposal is a terrible idea, and he wonders how anyone, even the Minister, can think that the Council of Magical Law will accept it.

It is true that the wizarding world is scared, and Percy can't blame them. The rumours that He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named has risen again and the seeming conformation of the Dementors fleeing Azkaban are hardly comforting. The unmarked murders of innocents are also frightening.

The Wizengamot has made mistakes before. This is something that he knows. They have made mistakes despite the Veritaserum, and other methods, but then he knows that they have all made mistakes. They have all made mistakes and they all continue to stand by them. It is something he also does.


	3. October 1999

**Title:** Leaving For The Tea Room  
**Author:** quietliban**  
Summary: **This is Percy's life. This is what he does.  
**Disclaimer:** The Harry Potter universe, characters and concepts contained therein belong to JK Rowling and her associated publishers. No copyright infringement is intended.  
**A/N:** Thanks to DanieChagnon23456 from FAP for the beta.

* * *

**October 1999**

**9:38am Friday, 1st of October, 1999**

Adrian is in a bad mood. Percy can see that written on his co-worker's face, but he doesn't say anything. He doesn't want Adrian's ire to be transferred to him.

He picks up his wand, once again glad that he is only charged with replying to concerned housewives, irate grumpy bachelors, as well as the occasional opinionated teenager. He knows that this work is not nearly as interesting but the moral questions and implications that plagued him during the Hemlock Sentence proposal are non-existent. He is very relieved at that.

Adrian asks him if he minds leaving the office early for his lunch break. Percy looks at his co-worker.

"Why?"

The other wizard shifts uncomfortably. "Draco Malfoy's coming in."

He nods and agrees to leave. He doesn't want to cause a scene, and those grey eyes of the young Malfoy disturb him.

**1:42pm Friday, 1st of October, 1999**

Percy returns to his office and is surprised to see that the blonde man is still there. The other man is sitting in the chair in front of Adrian's desk with his left legs resting on his other knee, tapping his ankle impatiently. Percy falters, he was sure that the young Malfoy would be gone by now.

"Don't you have a home to go to?" he asks.

The blonde man glances up at him, and there is no trace of malice, instead the expression on his pointed face reminds Percy of an amused feline. "Oh, it's you."

He takes his seat behind his desk, meeting the grey eyes that are continuing to look at him. Neither of them speaks, and the air in the small office is suddenly tense.

"Adrian said that you've been doing a stack of stuff on Azkaban and the attempted Hemlock Reforms."

Percy nods, more surprised that the young Malfoy is even speaking to him, than he is surprised that he and Adrian have discussed his work. "Yes, that's right," he answers.

There is silence again, but this time it is more cordially and Percy is less tense. He begins to catch up on his lost paper work, but every now and then he looks up and meets the young Malfoy's grey eyes. He always looks down again quickly and re-focuses on his paperwork, but he can't help the small smile that creeps across his lips each time.

He hears a sigh and he looks up again, disappointed to see the blonde man tapping his ankle again.

Adrian walks in and Percy glances at him; there is a surprised look on his co-worker's face.

"I got you an appointment with Bole," Adrian tells the young Malfoy who is nodding solemnly. "She's not happy with me but she agreed to see you."

"When?" Percy can hear the urgency in the blonde man's voice.

"Not until the twenty-eighth," Adrian tells him.

"The twenty eighth? But that's three weeks away," the younger man exclaims.

"It's the best I can do," Adrian shrugs, returning to his desk.

"Thanks," the young Malfoy says resolutely as he stands and leaves the small office.

**7:15pm Friday, 29th of October, 1999**

The Crossed Wands is a pub that Percy feels is more cultured than The Leaky Cauldron, and the atmosphere where he sits alone in a booth is less likely to give him an infection. He has never understood why so many wizards and witches frequent The Leaky Cauldron with its bad lighting, uncomfortable seating and creaky floorboards.

He takes a sip f his beer, absently staring at the bar. He ordered his meal forty-five minutes ago and is usually impressed with the speed and quality of the food here, but not tonight. He sighs as he takes off his glasses for a moment, staring at the lenses which have a fine layer of dust over them. It has been a strained week for him, as the Council of Magical Law was meant to deliver the verdict for the Hemlock Sentence proposal. They haven't released it yet, and the news has been sprayed over the pages of the Daily Prophet. Percy doesn't think that this is a good sign to him; a simple dismissal of the report is the only good sign.

A shadow falls over him, and he looks up as the waitress places the plate onto his table. "Sorry Percy," the young witch smiles. "There's a function being held upstairs, but the cook promises that it's warm."

He gives a shallow laugh. "As long as it's warm, Susan," he smiles up at the witch. "What's the function upstairs?"

"Oh, it's a birthday celebration," she replies before turning way.

Percy stares at his chicken parmigiana and takes in its delicious aroma, before cutting through the meat.

"Weasley," the young Malfoy remarks and Percy looks up to stare into his grey eyes.

"Malfoy," he replies, unsure of why the blonde man has approached him. "Why are you here?"

The young Malfoy smiles, he notices that it is a dazzling smile, a winning smile and overall, a fake smile. Percy becomes wary.

"Can't a boy talk to an acquaintance without having his motives questioned?" the reply seems to be in good humour, but Percy doesn't like it.

"That depends," Percy's eyes narrow as the young Malfoy slides into the booth without invitation, "on whether the boy actually likes the acquaintance in question."

The young Malfoy shrugs. "Actually I'm here for Blaise's birthday, but you were here, and I couldn't resist." Amusement glitters the blonde man's eyes. "So what are you doing here, sitting alone in a pub?"

"I'm having dinner," Percy replies shortly. He is suspicious of the pointy-faced man's apparent good nature. It's not something he's ever seen. Especially not directed at a Weasley such as himself and he is still a Weasley despite the distance he has placed between himself and those that bore him. His red hair marks him so.

"Alone?" the blonde man raises an eyebrow, and there is a smirk on his face. Percy almost growls, but instead cuts through the meat on his plate forcefully.

"Yes, until you sat down, uninvited."

The blonde man leans back, and studies him. "Touchy, are we?"

Percy doesn't reply, and instead keeps on eating his meal. He doesn't trust the good humoured Malfoy, especially since he hasn't seen him for weeks. Not since that day he had come back to find the Malfoy waiting in front of Adrian's desk.

The blonde man sighs, and pinches a chip as he gets up from the booth. Percy glares at him, but is glad that he is leaving.

The Malfoy looks down on him again, his grey eyes indifferent. "Goodbye Weasley." Percy watches as the blonde man turns and walks away.


	4. November 1999

**Title:** Leaving For The Tea Room  
**Author:** quietliban**  
Summary: **This is Percy's life. This is what he does.  
**Disclaimer:** The Harry Potter universe, characters and concepts contained therein belong to JK Rowling and her associated publishers. No copyright infringement is intended.  
**A/N:** Thanks to DanieChagnon23456 from FAP for the beta.

* * *

**November 1999**

**10:26am Monday, 1st of November, 1999**

There are too many offices on level two, Percy decides as he finally stands in front of the receptionist's desk. He has been into five different offices already only to be sent in four different directions until he found the office door marked 'Director of the Council of Magical Law.' Veronica Hedges slides in behind her desk and looks up at Percy. She smiles at him flirtatiously, but Percy ignores it and tells her that he has a ten-thirty appointment with the Director. She is quite a pretty witch, with long flowing black hair, and sparklingly blue eyes.

"Percy Weasley," she nods as she scribbles something on the large book in front of her with a quill. "You were the one who did the draft on the Hemlock stuff weren't you?"

He nods.

"I didn't know you were cute and young, I thought that they would have gotten one of their stuffy pretentious seniors to do it," she tells him conversationally. Percy shrugs.

"I don't know why they gave it to me," he begins to turn towards where the chairs are set up as a waiting room, but Veronica calls him back.

"Percy?" she calls her voice light and cheerful. "Do you want to go out for drinks on Friday?"

The witch's forwardness shocks him, he looks at her and she's smiling, albeit nervously. He doesn't know what to say, it has been so long since he and Penelope had broken up, and anything since then hasn't exactly been long lasting or particularly savoury. He smiles at her regretfully, besides he reasons, as he begins to tell her his refusal, he doesn't want to start a relationship with somebody who works for the Ministry.

"Look, Veronica is it?" He watches as her expression fades. "I'm sorry but I'm not...I'm not interested in women." It is not quite a lie, he thinks, because he hasn't been attracted to that many witches in a long while, and it disturbs him slightly, but those brief unsavoury affairs have mostly been with men.

A door opens, and Percy sees the blonde Malfoy walk out of it. He is shaking hands with a grey-haired wizard that must be the Council of Magical Law director.

"Oh, you're…" she falters, "You're _that_ way inclined."

Percy nods. "Sorry."

She gives a short laugh, and he can hear that it is empty. "Well, I guess we can still go out for drinks."

**3:33 pm Saturday, 6th of November, 1999**

The fans around him are sitting on the edge of their seats as a Chaser for Puddlemere United narrowly misses a bludger while passing the Quaffle. Percy himself is slightly bored. His team is losing and their star player is not on his best form. He is disappointed, he was so confident that the Chudley Cannons would win over Puddlmere, but not even the Snitch can win them the game now.

"Aw, c'mon," Daniel Goodwood announces his displeasure. "Can you believe that?" Percy turns to him.

"Well it's a fair call," he remarks, noting that one of the Puddlemere beaters is being restrained from attacking the umpire. "It was a low shot."

Daniel looks at him, mock-disgust in his eyes. "You bloody Cannons fans."

He laughs at his friend; he hasn't been to a Quidditch game in such a long time. It's good, he thinks, to be outside, watching his favourite team, whether they be winning or not.

"They have had a hard season though," Daniel concedes, "and I s'pose you ought to take what you can get."

It is true that the Cannons have been having a terrible season with losing their past eight games consecutively. Still, it doesn't mean that the Cannons can't play; it just means that the Cannons can't play well. "That's not true, we won against the Harpies, and you know they're one of the hardest teams in the competition," he defends his team.

"Yeah, but that was the start of the season," Daniel replies. "Oo, look at that."

He looks out onto the pitch and sees that the Seekers have finally shown some movement. Percy gets excited as he sees that the Cannons' seeker is just in front of Puddlemere's. The crowd is shouting and cheering, and he can't help but join in. "C'mon, c'mon, c'mon," he urges his team on. He knows they will not win, but that isn't the point. The Cannons' Seeker pulls up, and the Puddlemere Seeker keeps flying, but soon comes to a rest. The crowd sighs loudly in disappointment.

"Do you think they really saw it?" he asks Daniel.

Daniel laughs. "Probably not," he shrugs.

The Puddlemere chasers are in possession now, and Percy sighs. He looks over the crowd instead, and his eyes meet a pair that is similar to his own. He sees a wizard with long red hair with a slim blonde woman sitting beside him. The wizard sees him, and starts to wave. Percy begins to put his own hand up before quickly restraining himself. He has no brothers anymore.

The Seekers are moving again, and the stands are filled with cries. The Puddlemere Seeker is ahead this time, and the Cannons' Seeker is only just trailing him. "Oh, c'mon," Percy shouts with the rest of the fans. The Puddlemere Seeker twists as he reaches out and the Snitch flutters in his hands. Disappointment vibrates through Percy and he looks at Daniel.

"Twenty galleons, please?" Daniel puts out his hand. Percy shakes his head.

"I'll pay you at the pub," Percy says. Daniel looks at him doubtfully.

"We're not going to your fancy-schmancy pub are we?" Daniel smiles. "You know that I feel out of place there."

They get up, and Percy shakes his head. "No, we can go to wherever you want."

"Leaky is it then."

Percy groans and they stand in line for the portkey.

"C'mon Perce, it's not that bad," Daniel says.

Percy winces at the nickname. "If you want to catch a disease," he tells his friend, staring straight a head. His eyes meet another pair of eyes, grey ones this time. Grey eyes that bear no resemblance to his at all. He quickly looks away, and sees the dark-haired witch from the cafeteria. Malfoy's arm is around her shoulders, and she's laughing with him. Percy turns back to his friend, not comfortable with the feeling rising in his stomach.

"I've been going there since forever, and I've never caught anything," says Daniel.

"Yeah well, I've seen how you live Daniel," Percy replies as they reach the front of the portkey queue, "and honestly I'm surprised you having caught anything from your kitchen."

They both take hold of the portkey, and Percy feels the pull behind his navel.

**1:04 pm Monday, 8th of November, 1999**

The news is out. The Council of Magical Law has accepted the Hemlock Sentence. Percy picks at his sausages unhappily. He had hoped that his meeting with the Director would have influenced the council to say no. He realises that he shouldn't have hoped so.

**3:47 pm Tuesday, 9th of November, 1999**

Draco Malfoy sticks his head into Percy's office. Percy stares at him shocked before becoming annoyed with the blonde man's audacity.

"Adrian here?" the young Malfoy asks, his tone curt, and Percy just shakes his head before returning to his work. The replication charm is boring, and Percy actually finds himself wishing for something more complicated then replying to letters.

"Well," the blonde man's voice interrupts his work again. "Do you know where he's gone?"

Slowly Percy looks up. He doesn't know why the blonde man is still here. It disturbs him that he sees this man everywhere, from Quidditch to the pub and his very own office. It is starting to annoy him, and slightly freak him out.

"No," Percy replies and turns back to his work again.

The door clicks shut, and he thinks that the young Malfoy has gone. He sighs with relief as the strange feeling in his stomach recedes.

"Bloody pointy-faced rodent," Percy mutters to himself. He glances at the open book on the corner of his desk, quickly referencing when he sees that the blonde man is still in the office.

The Malfoy is glaring at him, and Percy thinks he sees anger and hurt in those grey eyes. Percy blushes, embarrassed at being caught out. The other man doesn't say anything, and Percy is most grateful. His grey eyes still continue to stare at him, and Percy swallows before replacing his quill over the parchment.

**3:25pm Tuesday, 16th of November, 1999**

Percy is about to leave the office for the tea room when he slams into another body. He looks up and sees the young Malfoy. The blonde man pushes him back inside the office.

"Adrian isn't here," Percy tells the Malfoy, and tries to leave again.

"I know," the Malfoy tells him. Percy is confused, if the blonde man isn't here to see Adrian then why is he here?

"I wanted to speak to you," the Malfoy tells him, and Percy lets the blonde man guide him back to his desk. His cup of tea can wait. The blonde man is silent for a moment and Percy waits for him to speak. The other man's grey eyes are searching Percy's and he has to look away. He can't bear their intensity.

"This has to stop," the Malfoy says decisively.

His eyes flick up to meet the blonde man's, he knows that there is surprise written on every edge of his face.

"I see you everywhere and it's…" Malfoy drifts off. He looks beyond Percy for a minute and Percy suddenly feels very nervous. "I'm imagining it, aren't I?" the young Malfoy doesn't finish his original sentence.

Percy feels the air thicken. "Imagining what?" he asks gently. He can see that the Malfoy is greatly distressed.

The Malfoy shakes his head in his fine boned hands, the golden strands of his hair coiling round his fingers. "I'm going insane."

"We're all mad here," Percy mutters under his breath.

The Malfoy looks up and laughs. "I'd better be going." Percy gets up and follows him out, tea cup in one hand. The young Malfoy doesn't speak, but holds the door open for a fraction longer to let Percy through. Their hands brush as Percy reaches up to take over. He walks silently behind the blonde man before turning into the tea room, confused to as why the blonde man was ever in his office in the first place.

**2:37pm Thursday, 25th of November, 1999**

There is a knock on the office door and Percy looks up. A dark-haired witch walks in and looks around for a moment before her eyes rest on him.

"Can I help you?" Percy asks cautiously.

"Oh good, Pucey's not here," the witch sighs in relief. "So you're Weasley?" she asks. Her voice is amused. Percy thinks that he has seen her somewhere before. It is possible that she was just a student at Hogwarts when he was there, but he isn't satisfied with that explanation.

"Yes, Percy Weasley," he responds. "And you are?"

"He's really confused about you, you know," the witch continues not answering his question. "I don't know why. He's always been so vehemently against you and yours. It should be just an open-shut case, but he says _you're_ different."

"Who?" Percy asks, but he has a sinking feeling in his stomach. He places the witch now. She was with the young Malfoy at the Quiddicth match. Percy feels a pinch of jealousy.

"Draco," she takes a seat in the chair in front of his desk. "Who else would I be here for? Not that he knows that I'm here. He would kill me if he knew."

"Oh," Percy is beside himself. He is sure he doesn't understand.

The witch stares at him for moment. Percy glances anywhere but at her. "He works in Magical Catastrophes, you know. So if you ever feel the urge to visit him just go to the Oblivators' headquarters. He's not that great at putting himself out there. He says he always stuffs it up…so please, if you're interested or not," the witch shrugs, "let him know. Okay?"

The witch looks at him again. "I still don't know why he wants you, though," she tells him as she walks out of his office. Percy stares at the door as it slams shut. He is not exactly sure what had just happened


	5. December 1999

**Title:** Leaving For The Tea Room  
**Author:** quietliban  
**Summary: **This is Percy's life. This is what he does.  
**Disclaimer:** The Harry Potter universe, characters and concepts contained therein belong to JK Rowling and her associated publishers. No copyright infringement is intended.  
**A/N:** Thanks to DanieChagnon23456 from FAP for the beta.

**

* * *

**

December 1999

**9:59 am Friday, 3rd of December, 1999**

Percy is about to leave the office for the tea room when he slams into another body. He looks up, surprised. The young Malfoy is looking at him with embarrassing desperation in his eyes.

"Weasley," he says softly. Percy is even more confounded with the blonde man's presence than the dark-haired witch's a week ago.

"Adrian's not here," he tells him with a sense of déjà vu.

The Malfoy nods shallowly and places a hand on Percy's chest, pushing him back into his office.

"Don't say anything," the Malfoy tells him as he brings his face closer to Percy's. The red-head's eyes widen as he realises the blonde man's intentions, but he does not turn away. There is something about the blonde man that Percy can't refuse; even the niggling sense that this would be very wrong for both of them isn't enough to make him push the young Malfoy away.

Malfoy's lips brush his gently and smoothly, and Percy lets him. His own hands sliding up the Malfoy's arms, he feels the Malfoy pull away, before leaning back and deepening the kiss.

Percy pulls away, he knows that he has to stop this, they are in his office, and Adrian could walk in at anytime. "We shouldn't…" he trails off as he stares into the young Malfoy's grey eyes. Shivers tingle up his spine. He feels the blonde man's lips on his again and he doesn't resist.


End file.
